Wayne Simmonds’ power play goal at 5:04 of the third period gave Philadelphia a 3-1 lead Friday night.

The Flyers appeared headed for a win.

However, Jared Boll and Cam Atkinson scored to tie it 3-3 forcing overtime and Artem Anisimov netted the winner at 2:17 of the extra period.

It was the second time in as many meetings Columbus edged Philly in overtime.

The Jackets have now won three of four meetings between the two clubs.

“It’s pretty embarrassing,” said Sean Couturier per CSNPhilly.com. “We’re in the playoff hunt. You can’t have an effort like that. We’re not gonna go far if we play like that.

“If we want to, we can be one of the best teams in the league. We gotta play our game and start putting pressure and pucks on net and tight defense. The last two games have been pretty embarrassing the way we lose these games.”

It was the second time this week the Flyers have squandered a third period lead and lost in overtime.

On Tuesday night Philly was up 1-0 in the third on the Montreal Canadiens. Tomas Plekanec scored with less than eight minutes remaining and David Desharnais won it in overtime.

“There’s something wrong with losing these games the way we’re losing them,” Couturier said. “We got to fix what’s wrong and play better for 60 minutes. It’s not a 40- or 45-minute game.”

The Flyers are currently seven points back of Boston for the second wild card spot in the Eastern Conference.

Philadelphia will look to avoid a third straight loss Sunday when they visit Buffalo. The Flyers won the only other meeting between the two clubs 4-3 on Jan. 17.

Kari Lehtonen will begin life on a short leash tonight against Florida — he’ll start against the Panthers, but will have newly acquired backup Jhonas Enroth on the bench for the first time since GM Jim Nill acquired him from Buffalo on Wednesday.

Lehtonen, who has been criticized this year for his uneven play, is 4-2-1 with a 2.70 GAA and .916 save percentage since the All-Star break — decent numbers, but hardly the type Dallas needs as it looks to get back into a playoff position.

According to hockey insider Darren Dreger, the Jets would like to add another top nine forward to their lineup. As a result, teams have called asking whether Cheveldayoff would be willing to part with Myers for a top forward.

Dreger says a deal invlovling Myers won’t happen before the deadline as the Jets would like to see how the blueliner fits in Winnipeg before making any further moves.

Tyler Myers made his debut for the Winnipeg Jets on Thursday, and it … could have gone better.

For one thing, the Nashville Predators beat his new team 3-1 tonight. Even worse, Nashville’s own really large, hard-shooting defenseman Shea Weber sent a shot that connected with Myers’ knee, leaving him in obvious pain late in the third period.

On the bright side, it might not be the absolute worst-case scenario. Puck Daddy’s Josh Cooper sheds a little light on his situation right after the contest:

Myers had an ice pack over his left knee area. Said he is ok. Talked to us …

So, maybe a bullet was dodged, although Myers would probably say that Weber’s shot didn’t feel a lot better.

While there were flashes of brilliance – or at least Winnipeg taking advantage of Myers’ powerful shot on a team that already boasts Dustin Byfuglien’s bomb – it had to be a bit of an empty feeling tonight.

That was as edgy dressing room #nhljets getting to that point where they don't take a loss well. They felt they should have won this game

Tonight in Nashville, Tyler Myers is expected to begin his Winnipeg Jets career on a defensive pairing with veteran puck-mover Tobias Enstrom.

Myers, traded yesterday from Buffalo, is unlikely to log the 25 or so minutes he typically did with the Sabres. That won’t be necessary with two other capable pairings in Winnipeg, Dustin Byfuglien with Ben Chiarot and Mark Stuart with Jacob Trouba.

In Buffalo, Myers skated mostly with Josh Gorges. Not only did those two play big minutes and face the toughest competition on a nightly basis, over 40 percent of the faceoffs they were on the ice for took place in the defensive zone.

That’s no formula for good offensive numbers, and Myers was proof, with just four goals and nine assists in 47 games.

Not that he hasn’t struggled in recent seasons; Myers is no pure victim of circumstance. But Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff believes the 25-year-old’s career can be rejuvenated if provided a better chance to succeed, in a role that’s not beyond his capabilities.

“Tyler’s got a tremendous foundation,” said Cheveldayoff. “He’s big. He can shoot. He’s going to have an opportunity to play with a deeper defense corps. He can log a lot of minutes.

“Sometimes, in this game, fresh starts are really welcome for players that have lots of expectations heaped on them, and lots of hype as young players. Because it is a hard game to play as a young player and even harder as a young defenseman.”

As for winger Drew Stafford, the other roster player the Jets picked up in the Evander Kane trade, he’ll start on a line with Mark Scheifele and Mathieu Perreault, two talented forwards enjoying fine seasons.